Sharing a Bed
by 5redroses
Summary: They share a bed because "We have trouble sleeping"- or so they tell James, but what's really going on? Warning: Mild SLASH- don't like, don't read.Meant to be a oneshot but I was asked to continue. I'm writing the fourth chapter, so review to motivate me
1. The lessons begin

**Sharing a Bed**

Disclaimer: The characters belong to JK Rowling not moi

"Moony?"

"Hmm?" Remus stirred slightly in his bed. Sirius pulled the curtain back further, exposing the light of his glowing wand..

"Can't sleep. Can I come in?" Sirius was asking a question but in reality it was one he already knew the answer to. Most nights they ended up sharing the same bed- the real question being who got out of their own. Tonight it was Sirius.

As usual Sirius had come up with an reason for sharing Remus' bed, otherwise it would imply that well…he preferred not to think about it. His other most common complaint was that he was cold, but that, of course was dependant on the weather. Remus however made no such excuses. He had shyly told Sirius the first time that he often had nightmares and that being near to somebody else helped. Usually, when he crept into Sirius' bed the only words he uttered were "Can I come in?" and recently he hadn't even bothered asking, not out of rudeness but because he knew what the answer would be.

"Uhuh," Remus lifted the duvet, inviting him in. Sirius clambered up, graceless as usual and collapsed beside Remus, his long hair looking even more handsome (if that was possible) for being tousled with sleep. Remus shifted closer and they automatically spooned their bodies together, Sirius' arm slung protectively over Remus' slim torso. It felt so natural to be like this, so 'right' that every time he lay there Sirius got closer to persuading himself that it wasn't wrong. They were just friends. Good friends.

Although they had tried to keep what they did from James and Peter, it wasn't easy and one morning they both overslept, so that their wakeup call was James' exclamation as he opened the curtains to find them lying there together. Sirius had explained casually that they sometimes had trouble sleeping while Remus turned a bright pink. Now both Peter and James were fine with it, even if James did smirk a little sometimes and mutter things under his breath that sounded suspiciously like "When are they going to realise?" There wasn't anything _to_ realise as far as Sirius was concerned, it wasn't as if he was attracted to Remus. It wasn't as if they actually _did _anything. Sudden unwelcome thoughts about what they could be doing flooded Sirius' mind. He shifted away from Remus slightly, wriggling backwards so that they no longer touched, suddenly feeling very horny and desperate to make the feeling go away. What could he think of, hmm…Wormtail, no, Snape, wait…Wormtail and Snape…together. Sirius shuddered at the very thought. Odd…his mind seemed to very boy-focussed lately, but maybe that was because he he no doubts about his attraction to girls, he enjoyed making out with girls as much as the next guy, so what if he couldn't hold down a relationship.

Remus seemed to feel the shudder (damn him and his werewolf senses) and promptly woke up.

"So, Sirius, who's the lucky lady then?"

"What?"

"Oh come on, you're horny, I can smell it and I'm guessing you've been thinking about one of your girls."

"There is no girl."

"Oh Padfoot, you've been looking at one of those muggle magazines again haven't you?" Sirius didn't reply. Let him think that.

"Most guys may find them hot but frankly it's demeaning and perverted."

"Wait, most guys? Don't you 'find them hot' Moony?" Remus met Sirius' eyes for a moment and then looked away again.

"I wish I did, it's bad enough being a werewolf," he mumbled.

"What? Oh…do you find it difficult then?"

"Find what difficult?" Remus sounded wary.

"Getting turned on of course. I can help if you want."

"That's not…okay, sure, whatever."

"Right then, when do you want to start your lessons?" Sirius asked innocently.

"Umm…we could start now I suppose, it depends what they involve." Sirius winked,

"That's for me to know and you to wonder. Okay, first, hmm, what first?" He placed a hand on Remus' shoulder and Remus jumped. He wasn't sure if Sirius was putting on an act or just being terribly obtuse. "You're so tense. Turn over." Remus obeyed. "Take off your shirt." As Remus raised an eyebrow he explained. "I think we'll start with a massage- you need to relax." Remus took his shirt off and lay back down. "Oh, and I should probably-Silencio-" he cast the silencing charm"-just in case you get vocal and Prongs and Wormtail get the wrong idea." 'Get vocal,' Sirius could not know what those words did to him.


	2. His second lesson

(The first chapter was meant to stand-alone but you guys wanted me to continue so I have! This chapter contains a slightly altered quote from Order of the Phoenix, see if you can spot it; I'll tell you what it was at the end.)

Chapter 2- His second lesson

Remus stretched languidly in Sirius' embrace, still topless form last nights "lesson" when suddenly the curtains were spelled open by a grinning Peter.

"I love this spell, you won't be able to close them now. You have to get up!" he said triumphantly before taking in Remus' naked chest. He ducked out of sight, embarrassed. Remus had kept his eyes tightly closed, hoping that Peter would think he was still asleep and leave him be.

"James?" Peter thought he was speaking quietly but Remus could hear him perfectly, and so it seemed could Sirius, who appeared to just have woken up.

"Uhuh?" James still sounded groggy. Remus wasn't surprised; he'd been up late watching Lily study.

"You know what you're always saying about those two…" he gestured towards Remus' bed. "Well…Moony doesn't have a top on so I thought maybe…"

James whooped, "Finally!" Peter turned puzzled eyes towards him.

"Don't you think that it's a bit wrong though, I mean they're both blokes, don't you find that disgusting?"

"Shut up," Sirius said it quietly but it was definitely a warning.

"Oh…Sirius, are you awake?" Peter's voice was falsely bright. "I didn't mean _you're_ disgusting or anything. It's just…he's not even human, isn't it kinda' like doing it with an animal-"

"I said-shut-UP!" roared Sirius, and with a stupendous effort he and Remus managed to force the curtains closed again. Remus' eyes had snapped open when Peer mentioned him and Peter caught a glimpse of his face as the two boys drew the curtains; it was completely miserable. He turned round to face a glowering James. Oops…

"I thought we sorted this out in second year," James said through gritted teeth. "I think you and I need to have a chat about Remus' Furry Little Problem. Why don't we take a walk?" Without waiting for an answer he pushed Peter through the door and went out himself, slamming it behind them.

Sirius looked over to where Remus was huddled on the bed and sighed. He gently pried Remus' hands from his tear-streaked face and gathered the smaller boy up in his arms.

"Don't listen to him Remie, he's an idiot," he rubbed comforting circles on the other boy's back. Remus turned wide eyes towards him.

"It's true though, I am disgusting."

"What? Don't be stupid, we all love you just the way you are." He kissed the top of Remus' head.

"Don't!" Remus shied away and Sirius blinked at him, shocked.

"Look it's bad enough being in love with you without you touching me all the time. I know you'll never return my feelings or anything, I don't need to be reminded constantly," he was looking down at his hands, absently picking at his nails.

But you…Oh Merlin, it all makes sense now!"

Remus looked up sadly, "I think I'll go-" he was interrupted by Sirius' lips, which came crashing down on his, knocking him flat on his back. When they came up for air, Remus panted for a while before he could speak, "But what about those magazines?" Sirius grinned.

"You, Moony may be gay; but I'm one hundred percent bisexual; it would be cruel after all to deprive half the population." Remus swatted him gently and leaned in for another kiss. Sirius smirked against his lips. "I guess this would be Lesson Two: Kissing. We're getting through these quite fast…"

(Here's the quote, did you recognise it?

"_I said-shut-UP!" roared the man and with a stupendous effort, he and Lupin managed to force the curtains closed again. _Page 74 OOTP

Please leave a review and tell me what you think, I'm also interested to know whether any of you picked up on the quote while you were reading.)


	3. A lesson in perception

Thanks for the review

_I'm sorry I've been such a long time guys, wow- 20 reviews for two chapters! Keep that up and I'll be more inclined to write. ___

_I was pondering the idea of doing one lesson per chapter but I couldn't really think what to do, plus I want to develop the plot a bit._

_This chapter is dedicated to StoryofGreen who said I should put in more emotions and gave me a really helpful review._

I've just changed a few things after LouisaB gave me a very helpful review which made me realise that I'd left some notes on the end of the story and also contradicted myself, sorry for those of you who got this alert twice.

Sorry guys, I just found the original paper that I wrote this on and realised that I missed a bit on the end, for those of you who have received an alert email for this chapter for the third time, I apologise.

Chapter 3 –

Remus lay in his bed thinking; Sirius had gone to have a shower while James and Peter were still having their "talk" (in their pyjamas most probably as they had only just woken up before they went downstairs). This train of thought led Remus back to Peter and what he had said. He had always known that he was different, apart from being a werewolf that is, he had made friends with Lily really easily but was much more wary of the boys in his year; it had taken Sirius stealing his book (to stop him reading so much) for him to make friends with the other marauders. It was only, however, in the last few months that he had come to terms with being gay, after realising that his feelings towards Sirius were more than friendly.

What had started as an innocent custom of sharing each other's beds had suddenly become quite different for him. He didn't know about Sirius (he didn't even know how long Sirius had liked him for) but having a warm male body pressed up against his night after night had presented a real challenge for him not to act on his impulses.

He burrowed further into the duvet, inhaling deeply as it came over his head, enveloping him in darkness. He could still smell traces of Sirius, of sweat and expensive cologne, and of the coconut conditioner that was Sirius' best kept secret, the real reason why his hair was so damn shiny. Shiny. Silver is shiny. Werewolves are allergic to silver.

"_It's just…he's not even human, isn't it kinda' like doing it with an animal-"_ Peter's words echoed in his head. All the thoughts and fears that he had been squashing down since the Snape Incident came flooding back, except this time it wasn't Sirius who he couldn't trust, it was Peter. What if he told the whole school, what if he was so disgusted by his relationship with Sirius that he confronted Remus publicly? A rare emotion began to curl its way round Remus' heart: anger. How dare that rat call _him _an animal, how dare he condemn them, it wasn't as if _he'd_ ever had a relationship himself to boast of.

He dressed hurriedly, cursing the zip on his jeans as it got stuck, glad that it was a Saturday so most people would still be asleep. He practically ran out of the dormitory, skidding to a halt in the common room where he found James and Peter, looking much more friendly than they should after what Peter had said. Ever practical, Remus shut the door before letting rip.

"You bastard! You complete and utter bastard!" He launched himself towards Peter, his fists flying wildly.

"Remus!" James pulled him back and stared at him wide eyed, although not before Remus had managed to do some serious damage. "Pete and I have been talking and-" But Remus wasn't listening.

"And you! You, sticking up for him. Do you agree with him then, do think you I'm an animal?"

Sirius hummed to himself absentmindedly as he washed off the last traces of soap. He was worried about Remus and what would happen when Peter and he came face to face. He climbed out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his hips. Just then he heard shouting coming from below. Oh dear. He ran out of the bathroom and into the common room to find an irate Remus being held back by James while Peter cowered on the sofa, cradling a bloody nose. Crap. Forgetting his state of undress he ran forwards to Remus' side. Unfortunately his towel had other ideas and tripped him up, sending him sprawling at the others' feet, completely starkers. So much for a dashing prince. The other three took one look at him and began to laugh, throwing their heads back and hooting with glee, the tension dispersing like candle smoke. The only acknowledgement of his nakedness came from Remus, whose cheeks were slowly but definitely turning a pretty violent shade of pink. James, seeing this laughed and threw Sirius his towel,

"Better cover up mate or Moony here might explode from embarrassment!"

He did so, knotting the towel firmly, and gently lead Remus to the sofa while James tended Peter's nose with a healing spell, something that he'd got quite proficient at due to the exploits of the group of friends and which had earned him the pet name of "nurse-maid", which he hated. Once Peter was cleaned up, Sirius cleared his throat noisily: Remus may have calmed down a bit but Peter still had a whole lot of explaining to do.

"Right…umm I'm not sure how to say this but," Peter chewed his lip "I'msorryandItalkedtoJamesandrealisedthatthereasonthatI'msouncomfortablewithyoutwowasbecauseI'mgaytoo."

"What?" This was Sirius. Remus' sharp ears had picked up and understood every word and he was still too shocked to say anything.

"Please don't make me say it again," Peter pleaded. James took over.

"Moony, I guess you understood?" Remus nodded dazedly "'Kay, Sirius: Pete's gay. He'd been feeling weird and insecure about blokes and didn't realise why and seeing the two of you just brought to the surface things he'd been trying not to think about.

"Sorry Remus, Sirius," Peter hung his head.

"Come here," Remus held out his arms and hugged him, and Sirius of course felt the need to join in. James smiled at them fondly from across the room until a look of startled revelation crept across his face.

"Bloody hell, am I the only straight Marauder?" The other three exchanged a glance.

"Not for long…" shouted Sirius and they all dived at James, tickling him until he shrieked for mercy.

"First we have to see if we've successfully infected you. Are you, James Edmund Potter (a.k.a. Prongs and nurse-maid) gay? Remus managed to say this using his prefect voice with a perfectly straight face.

"Anything, just get off me! Fine, I'm gay, happy?"

"Very, I wish I could have taped that, if only to play it back to a certain red-head," said Sirius wistfully. "Oh, and by the way, I'll have you know you're not the only one here who appreciates the fairer sex. I'm bi not gay, but from now on my heart is bequeathed to Moony here." He took the boy in question's hand and kissed it. Remus blushed, pleased.


	4. A lesson in bravery

_I hope the last chapter pleased some people cause I was getting a lot of unhappy bunnies who were complaining about homophobic Peter, I didn't know it was such a stereotype; I bet Gay Peter isn't one though! I'm sorry to anyone who got the alert three times for the last chapter cause I kept editing it, If you read it a while ago I'd suggest you read it again because I put an extra bit on the end which I may make a reference to later. I'm not as happy with this chapter as I would have liked but it will have to do. Thanks to **Shadow Priesstes **for a plot idea._

**Chapter 4- A lesson in bravery**

The next week passed in a blur of heated snogging sessions in the secret passageways between classes and playing footsie under the desk; Remus still dutifully managing to take notes although occasionally, instead of the teacher's words, the ones that Sirius whispered in his ear made their way onto the paper and blushing, he siphoned off the ink before anyone could see.

The two of them carried on sharing a bed, the only difference being that they now choose either Remus' or Sirius' in the evening and got in while the others were still awake. A few times they forgot to cast a silencing spell and were interrupted by James' voice telling them to "stop scarring him for life" and which Sirius would invariably diagnose as jealousy, asking James if he'd like to "come join the fun" which effectively shut him up.

It was Friday afternoon and (joy oh joy) double potions with the Slytherins when Remus began to notice Snape staring at him. He knew that the other boy already knew his first secret but the way that Snape was scrutinising him and Sirius was panicking him slightly. Had he guessed? As soon as the bell rang he dashed back to their dormitory and got out Sirius' pensieve. He had never looked at Sirius' memories but he could guess why they weren't ones that Sirius wanted clouding his head. He called to mind every lesson that he had had that week with the Slytherins and added the silvery memories to the shining basin. Glancing furtively around (he hadn't after all asked to use it) he took a deep breath and dived in, coming to rest on an empty chair in the Charms classroom.

Right, this must have been Monday morning. Remus glanced around the classroom. It was weird seeing himself across the room, seated next to Sirius. He noticed that they were sitting very close together; much too close, they would have to be more careful. He looked over to where Snape was sitting by Lily at the back of the classroom. Snape appeared to be concentrating on the lesson, his hand moving dutifully across the parchment, taking notes. Remus almost missed it, it was so quick. Snape cast a fleeting glance at Remus and Sirius and frowned slightly before turning away. He moved on to the next memory, in this one Snape's eyes kept on flicking over to where Remus and Sirius were sitting. The next memory showed Snape staring at him, and the next, and the next. In some of the memories he wasn't even sitting next to Sirius. Remus was suddenly startled by a voice behind him.

"Whatcha doing?" It was Sirius.

"I noticed Snape staring at me today, I wanted to see if he had done it before, and he has. Look." Sirius dutifully glanced over to where Snape was gazing at Sirius.

"Maybe he fancies you," Sirius chuckled and pulled Remus upwards, out of the pensieve but as the week progressed Remus couldn't help thinking that there might have been some truth in what Sirius had said.

Remus was studying late one night in the library when Snape approached him. Sirius had offered to come but Remus knew he that he would have been more of a hindrance that a help and politely declined. Since the Incident last year, Snape had avoided Remus more than ever and it seemed strange that he was suddenly seeking him out. Remus thought he knew the reason why but he told himself he was wrong. Professor Dumbledore may have been able to stop Snape spreading his first secret but this was different, if Snape knew about he and Sirius then it would probably be all over the whole school by tomorrow. Remus resolved to be civil and not to give anything away.

"Snape?"

"Lu-Remus, can I talk to you for a minute?" Remus was surprised at the use of his first name but didn't show it, waving his hand to indicate the chair opposite. There was no need to go somewhere more private; Remus always chose a secluded area of the library to study in. Snape seemed to be gathering the courage to speak.

"Remus, tell me the truth, what's going on between you and Black?" Snape demanded. Remus decided a little white lie was needed here.

"Nothing. We had an argument at the weekend then made up." There, that would explain their unnatural closeness.

"Right. Good. Remus, will you go out with me?" This was said very fast and Snape's cheeks turned bright red. Remus had certainly not been expecting this. He didn't know what to say. When the silence had gone on for a minute or so, Snape spoke again.

"You are gay aren't you?" Remus flushed, he wondered if it was very obvious.

"Yes… but I'm already with someone else." That technically wasn't a lie.

"How can you have a proper relationship with some guy who doesn't even know what you are? I know and I don't care." Snape's eyes were warm and Remus found himself wondering just what the other boy's feelings were for him.

"Remus?" He brought himself out of his thoughts and answered without thinking.

"He does know." There was a pause. Whoops. Only the Marauders and Snape knew about his lycanthropy.

"It is Black isn't it? Don't try to deny it." Snape said, his voice thick with loathing and unshed tears. He fled the library, leaving Remus wondering what on earth he had started.

He soon found out. The next morning he and Sirius emerged from the common room to find the walls papered with identical sketches. They showed him and Sirius kissing and were captioned with the words: "Sirius Black and Remus Lupin are queer". Sirius snarled angrily and started ripping them down but Remus stopped him.

"I don't think it's going to make much difference Sirius, people have already seen them." And indeed the Griffindors nearby were gathered in huddles, discussing the rumour. Remus may have appeared calm on the outside but his stomach was heaving unpleasantly; he gripped Sirius arm and steered him away from the others. He wished that he could talk to James and Peter, but they had already gone down to breakfast.

"What are we going to do Remus?" Sirius, always the strong one, was close to breaking down. Remus swallowed.

"We have to go down and face them," and ignoring the stares from the other Griffindors he grabbed Sirius' hand in his and started down the nearest staircase.

The moment that they came through the doors of the Great Hall, there was a deafening silence. Remus had told Sirius about his library encounter with Snape last night and he could feel Sirius glaring at the slytherin. They went to sit opposite James and Peter, pretending not to see how everyone's eyes followed them. At last Remus couldn't bear it any longer, he was about to stand up and say who knows what when Peter beat him to it.

"Yes they're together, yes they're gay, and so am I. Deal with it. " He sat down again. Everybody remained silent, shocked. And then James congratulated his friend and the Great Hall erupted into conversation.

_Don't forget to review._


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